Creed Of Creeds eBook

Whilst the greatest effort has been made to ensure the quality of this text, due to the historical nature of this content, in some rare cases there may be minor issues with legibility. The noble and venerable formulary known as the Apostles'' Creed, though presenting the essence of their Belief and Testimony, cannot be positively credited to the Apostolic Age. Indeed, whatever may have been the practice of individual churches, there is no trace in Christian Literature of any. definite summaries of Christian Belief till a much later age - the age of Irenaus and Tertullian.

"It is sufficiently evident," writes Principal Tulloch, "that ''Confessions of Faith,'' or ''Rules and Standards of Truth'' existed in the Ante-Nicene Church from the last quarter of the second century ... but it is equally evident that there was no Rule of Faith universally accepted by the Church, or authoritatively imposed by any Catholic body up to the time of the Nicene Council."

The earliest form of this Creed is contained in the Confessions of Faith, presented to Julius, Bishop of Rome, by Marcellus, the Bishop of Ancyra, about the year A.D. 336. He describes it as the faith, which he "learnt and was taught from the Holy Scriptures."